Damian Carrington's blog + Fishing | The Guardianhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/damian-carrington-blog+fishing
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Manta rays: how illegal trade eats its own lunch | Damian Carringtonhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/damian-carrington-blog/2013/mar/05/manta-rays-cites-illegal-wildlife-trade
The gills of this magnificent glider of the oceans are valuable, but the rays are worth far more alive than dead<p>If you think that protecting wildlife, especially the big, sexy creatures, is a worthy thing to do but has little to with the lives of people, consider the case of the manta ray. A trade in their gills worth just $5-10m a year is devastating their populations which, in the places where it is developed, supports a tourist trade worth well over $100m a year. </p><p>It is not hard to see why tourists will pay to see them. They are extraordinary creatures, up to 7m in wingspan, living for 50 years and unafraid of people. But their curiosity makes them very easy to catch and in Indonesia and Sri Lanka, populations have plummeted by 56% to 86%, according to a <a href="https://www.sharksavers.org/en/blogs-news/shark-savers-blog/for-immediate-release-manta-rays-worth-more-alive-than-dead/">report by Wild Aid and Shark Savers</a>. </p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/damian-carrington-blog/2013/mar/05/manta-rays-cites-illegal-wildlife-trade">Continue reading...</a>EnvironmentIllegal wildlife tradeWildlifeOceansFishingTue, 05 Mar 2013 06:30:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/damian-carrington-blog/2013/mar/05/manta-rays-cites-illegal-wildlife-tradePhotograph: Paul Hilton/Manta Ray Of HopeA large manta ray is pulled up along side of a boat after it's been speared for it's gills and meat in Indonesia, July 2011. Photograph: Paul Hilton/Manta Ray Of HopePhotograph: Paul Hilton/Manta Ray Of HopeA large manta ray is pulled up along side of a boat after it's been speared for it's gills and meat in Indonesia, July 2011. Photograph: Paul Hilton/Manta Ray Of HopeDamian Carrington, Bangkok2013-03-05T06:30:00ZIllegal fish trawlers are marine maverick's new target | Damian Carringtonhttps://www.theguardian.com/environment/damian-carrington-blog/2011/mar/16/illegal-fish-trawlers
Pete Bethune spent four months in a Japanese jail for action against whalers. Now he has new targets in his sights<p>"Don't make me out to be violent, or some kind of cowboy," says Pete Bethune, as he holds me in his steady, brown-eyed gaze.</p><p>Seven months on from his release from a Japanese prison, after being <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/07/peter-bethune-sea-shepherd-sentence">convicted for taking direct action against whaling ships</a> and crew, we've met in a south London pub to discuss his new campaign group, <a href="http://www.facebook.com/earthrace">Earthrace Conservation</a>.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/damian-carrington-blog/2011/mar/16/illegal-fish-trawlers">Continue reading...</a>FishingWhalingOceansEnvironmentConservationWed, 16 Mar 2011 11:49:00 GMThttp://www.theguardian.com/environment/damian-carrington-blog/2011/mar/16/illegal-fish-trawlersPhotograph: Sandra Mu/Getty ImagesSea Shepherd skipper Peter Bethune talks to the media at a press conference at Hotel Grand Chancellor on July 12, 2010 in Auckland, New Zealand. Photograph: Sandra Mu/Getty ImagesPhotograph: Sandra Mu/Getty ImagesSea Shepherd skipper Peter Bethune talks to the media at a press conference at Hotel Grand Chancellor on July 12, 2010 in Auckland, New Zealand. Photograph: Sandra Mu/Getty ImagesDamian Carrington2011-03-16T11:49:00Z